Press Kit

USC Cardiothoracic Surgery

The University of Southern California has been a leader in the treatment of cardiothoracic diseases for more than 10 years. Under the leadership of Vaughn A. Starnes, M.D., USC cardiothoracic surgeons have performed more than 15,000 open heart surgeries for valve repair and replacements and coronary artery bypasses, and more than 10,000 surgeries for diseases of the lungs, esophagus and chest wall. Physicians have engaged in a new era of cardiothoracic surgery that promises to significantly improve the treatment of the most common forms of heart and lung diseases by introducing minimally invasive technology to cardiothoracic surgery.

In 2006, the USC Cardiovascular Thoracic Institute officially opened its doors with the aim of significantly expanding the scope of non-invasive cardiac and vascular services available to patients. The Institute includes both clinical faculty including cardiologists, vascular surgeons and others, as well as scientific faculty.

The Institute’s clinical faculty is patient-focused, bringing together the disciplines of cardiothoracic surgery, cardiology and vascular surgery in one location. In addition to providing diagnostic testing, the Institute is implementing a customer service program to ensure streamlined registration as well as efficient and timely reporting of all results.

The scientific faculty associated with the Cardiovascular Thoracic Institute is continuing to explore new research opportunities in vascular biology and regenerative medicine. Thanks to the collaboration between the physicians and scientists, who share core facilities and other resources within the Institute, laboratory findings are made rapidly available for patient care.

The Institute is housed within the Health Care Consultation II building on USC Health Sciences Campus, with research faculty temporarily assigned space in the Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute building. In the future, cardiovascular and thoracic scientists will conduct research in the building planned for the Broad Institute for Integrative Biology and Stem Cell Research.

Preliminary planning is under way for the Health Care Consultation III building, which will be the future home of the Cardiovascular Thoracic Institute’s clinical services.